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Texas Health Rockwall is using its new Primary Stroke Center certification to show the community how to act quickly in the event someone suffers a stroke. (Published Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012)

Hundreds and thousands of Americans suffer surprise strokes each year, now a North Texas hospital is using it's new primary stroke center certification to show the community how acting quickly can save lives.

The doctors and nurses at Texas Health Rockwall know a stroke can strike anytime. On Wednesday they used a grocery store, to show how to save a life at the first signs of a stroke.

"The faster you get to a hospital, the faster they can get medication on board, hopefully that will break up a clot that's in your brain," said Jason Piecek from Rockwall County EMS.

Paige Murphy acted as the stroke victim, but she's knows all too well that strokes can devastate after watching her father's health decline when he suffered a stroke.

"It was just so heartbreaking to see him not be able to do anything, hard for him to move," said Murphy. "He couldn't eat, he couldn't move."

Kim Arrowood is playing the bystander who quickly calls for help, the hospital says getting treatment within three hours, is critical.

"It can happen at anytime, in any place to anybody and a lot of people are in denial about it thinking it will go away," said Arrowood.

In this drill, the patient started feeling numbness on one side and a head ache, but doctors say symptoms can vary from slurred speech to vision loss.

It's the first time the hospital has put on the community-wide mock stroke as a chance for them to educate the community and refresh their staff on stroke protocol.

"If my dad could have gotten to the hospital and you know they could have had that medication 20 years ago, his last ten years of his life would have been different," said Murphy.